Griffon has closed the combination of its AMES U.S. and Canada operations with Venanpri Tools, creating a new platform called Veritage Brands and moving another step away from its long-running tools exposure. ONCAP, the private equity arm of Onex, will control the venture with a 57% equity stake, while Griffon retains 43%.
The economics matter more than the branding. Griffon received $100 million in cash and $161 million of second-lien debt from Veritage Brands in exchange for AMES North America, valuing the transaction at $261 million. That structure lets Griffon pull out capital today while preserving upside if ONCAP can improve margins, rationalize sourcing, and build scale across hand tools, lawn and garden products, and home organization.
For Griffon, this is less about expansion than subtraction. Management has been signaling a pivot toward a pure-play building products company centered on garage doors, rolling steel doors, grilles, and ceiling fans. In that context, AMES had become a portfolio mismatch. Tools and lawn and garden carry different demand cycles, retail dynamics, and sourcing risks than building products tied more directly to residential repair, remodeling, and commercial construction.
ONCAP is making a different bet. By combining AMES with Venanpri, it is assembling a broader tools and outdoor products platform at a time when sponsors are looking for carve-outs that can support procurement savings and channel consolidation. The second-lien debt component also suggests a buyer intent on preserving flexibility while pushing leverage into the new vehicle rather than the seller.
Acquire.fyi data shows manufacturing M&A volume is up 27% year over year, even as median deal size in the sector has fallen to $325 million. That points to a market where buyers remain willing to transact on middle-market industrial assets, particularly when the target can be repositioned through separation or combination.
The remaining question is whether Veritage can turn category breadth into pricing power. Retailers have been pressing suppliers on inventory discipline and promotional support, while tariffs, freight costs, and raw material volatility still complicate planning. Griffon has chosen focus over diversification. ONCAP now has to prove that scale in tools is still worth paying for.
Source: Company press release and Acquire.fyi's proprietary data
